School Performance Compact for 2018-19 to Focus on Board Oversight of Improvement Plans

Jun. 12, 2018

Tonight, the DPS Board of Education discussed lessons learned related to the School Performance Compact, the board policy that sets expectations for the district related to school supports, interventions and community engagement. These lessons take on particular meaning as DPS begins planning for community-wide conversations to deepen its thinking about what student and school success looks like, what it means to be a “quality” school and how the district should design support and accountability structures with those factors in mind, both for schools and central teams.

DPS’ top priority is to ensure students have access to high-quality schools in every neighborhood. “The School Performance Compact is a promise to both internal and external stakeholders — our communities, our kids, our students’ families — for quality schools,” said District 5 Board Representative Lisa Flores.

Board members discussed aspects of the policy that call for strong supports for schools that are struggling. “I do believe there is a way to build with our schools to make decisions that improve the environment for the community and our students,” said Board President Anne Rowe.

The board determined that the current School Performance Compact policy guidelines will not be applied for the 2018-19 school year, based on its reflections on past learnings and given the community conversations that will soon launch. For 2018-19, the board will use the following guidelines:

Schools (both charter and district-run) that are rated red on the 2018 SPF will present to the board regarding their ongoing or planned improvement strategies and their planned or needed supports, along with a presentation of their improvement goals over time.

The district will provide a data dashboard for each red school (both charter and district-run) that includes culture and operational data, along with academic data.

The Portfolio Management Team will complete the regularly-scheduled renewal process for all charter schools whose contracts are up for renewal in 2018-19.

Acknowledging that sharp declines in the number of school-aged children in certain areas of our city will continue, the board expressed its intention to actualize recommendations from the Strengthening Neighborhoods Initiative and work to ensure schools are healthy enough from an enrollment perspective that they can offer students robust programming in a manner that promotes greater socioeconomic integration.

The board will form a sub-committee to flesh out the path forward in greater detail this summer. For more information, read the memo and presentation from Lisa Flores.